Undergraduate Courses In Brazil Research Articles

The Importance of Teaching Metrology for Chemistry Undergraduate Courses

The Chemistry undergraduate courses, in general, aim to train professionals for research, teaching and activities in industry. In all these areas, the statistical treatment of data supported by metrology disciplines has been a decisive boost to consolidate conclusions in Analytical Chemistry. The main objective of this work was to stimulate the teaching of the metrology in the chemistry undergraduate courses in Brazil and Portugal. In this work we present some concepts and practical cases of metrology and statistics, which together guarantee the suitability of analytical measurement results for specific purposes. Knowledge of these concepts is essential for the chemist to act effectively and responsibly, avoiding some pitfalls when processing data in Analytical Chemistry. A supplementary material with Excel spreadsheets is available, containing the statistical treatment of some examples and complementing the discussions in this work. A survey is presented among the most important universities in Brazil and Portugal, from which we can see the lack of teaching these subjects in undergraduate chemistry courses. For this reason, this work recommends a syllabus for creating chemical metrology disciplines in undergraduate chemistry courses. To subsidize this syllabus, an extensive, but not exhaustive, bibliography is indicated.

A PROPAGAÇÃO DO ERRO DO pKa DA ÁGUA NOS LIVROS DE QUÍMICA ORGÂNICA

THE PROPAGATION OF THE ERROR IN THE pKa OF WATER IN ORGANIC CHEMISTRY TEXTBOOKS. In organic chemistry, the pKa is a property used to compare the acidity behavior for many substances, and to locate the position of equilibria in acid-base reactions and to provide information about structure and reactivity. Evidence in the literature shows that the values of pKa for water and hydronium ion, commonly cited in organic chemistry textbooks, are incorrect. The values of 15.74 for H2O and −1.74 for H3O+ are due to a propagated misconception in the equilibrium calculations while the correct values are 14.0 for H2O and 0.0 for H3O+. This subtle difference of 1.74 units on the pKa scale between both values reflects an error greater than 55 times in the level of acidity for these chemical species. An immediate correction of these values is necessary for the adequate teaching of organic chemistry. A literature search was conducted on the most used organic chemistry books in graduate and undergraduate courses in Brazil, revealing that almost all values cited were inadequate. The textbook Chemistry of Organic Compounds, 3rd edition (1965), by Carl Robert Noller is suggested as possible source of this misinformation in organic chemistry textbooks.

The unit ratio-extended Weibull family and the dropout rate in Brazilian undergraduate courses.

We propose a new family of distributions, so-called the unit ratio-extended Weibull family ([Formula: see text]). It is derived from ratio transformation in an extended Weibull random variable. The use of this transformation is a novelty of the work since it has been less explored than the exponential and has not yet been studied within the extended Weibull class. Moreover, we offer a valuable alternative to model double-bounded variables on the unit interval. Five [Formula: see text] special models are studied in detail, namely the: i) unit ratio-Gompertz; ii) unit ratio-Burr XII; iii) unit ratio-Lomax; v) unit ratio-Rayleigh, and vi) unit ratio-Weibull distributions. We propose a quantile-parameterization for the new family. The maximum likelihood estimators (MLEs) are presented. A Monte Carlo study is performed to evaluate the behavior of the MLEs of unit ratio-Gompertz and unit ratio-Rayleigh distributions. This last model has closed-form and approximately unbiased MLE for small sample sizes. Further, the [Formula: see text] submodels are adjusted to the dropout rate in Brazilian undergraduate courses. We focus on the areas of civil engineering, economics, computer sciences, and control engineering. The applications show that the new family is suitable for modeling educational data and may provide effective alternatives compared to other usual unit models, such as the Beta, Kumaraswamy, and unit gamma distributions. They can also outperform some recent contributions in the unit distribution literature. Thus, the [Formula: see text] family can provide competitive alternatives when those models are unsuitable.

The Profile of Palaeontology Teaching in Undergraduate Courses in Brazil

Background: Currently, palaeontology professors have been challenged to update and incorporate innovative teaching approaches into their planning to help students develop the necessary skills and competencies. However, today there is a mismatch between the current and the ideal teaching profiles. Objective: To describe the palaeontology teaching profile in undergraduate courses in Brazil. Design: Descriptive and exploratory study. Setting and participants: Palaeontology professors (n=37) in undergraduate courses at several Brazilian higher education institutions. Data analysis collection: Data were collected through a semi-structured online form (survey), triangulated and categorised into (a) general characteristics, (b) teacher education, (c) teaching experience, (d) undergraduate courses, (e) curriculum, syllabus, and programme discussion meetings, (f) inter and multidisciplinarity, and (g) curriculum. Results: Despite the limited scope (small sample size), the study results guided the focus of the research and improvement efforts, as there are still many difficulties and challenges to be overcome to raise the quality of teaching in undergraduate palaeontology across the country. Conclusions: The data from this study can serve as a valuable basis for professors-researchers, educational managers, and policymakers interested in implementing innovative continuing education programmes and in supporting management and policy decisions regarding potential reforms of palaeontology teaching in Brazilian undergraduate courses in higher education institutions.

Another unit Burr XII quantile regression model based on the different reparameterization applied to dropout in Brazilian undergraduate courses.

In many practical situations, there is an interest in modeling bounded random variables in the interval (0, 1), such as rates, proportions, and indexes. It is important to provide new continuous models to deal with the uncertainty involved by variables of this type. This paper proposes a new quantile regression model based on an alternative parameterization of the unit Burr XII (UBXII) distribution. For the UBXII distribution and its associated regression, we obtain score functions and observed information matrices. We use the maximum likelihood method to estimate the parameters of the regression model, and conduct a Monte Carlo study to evaluate the performance of its estimates in samples of finite size. Furthermore, we present general diagnostic analysis and model selection techniques for the regression model. We empirically show its importance and flexibility through an application to an actual data set, in which the dropout proportion of Brazilian undergraduate animal sciences courses is analyzed. We use a statistical learning method for comparing the proposed model with the beta, Kumaraswamy, and unit-Weibull regressions. The results show that the UBXII regression provides the best fit and the most accurate predictions. Therefore, it is a valuable alternative and competitive to the well-known regressions for modeling double-bounded variables in the unit interval.

Estudo preliminar de indicadores de qualidade de um curso de graduação em engenharia química

Diante do cenário de implementação das novas Diretrizes Curriculares Nacionais – DCNs-, o presente trabalho se propõe a fazer um estudo sobre os indicadores do curso de Engenharia Química da Universidade Federal de Viçosa (UFV). Para tanto, foi realizado um estudo das propostas apresentadas pela nova resolução, bem como um levantamento de indicadores de qualidade de desempenho dos cursos de graduação no Brasil. Com o estudo, foi possível contextualizar o curso de Engenharia Química por meio da análise crítica dos indicadores levantados, bem como indicar caminhos pelos quais a confecção de um novo projeto pedagógico do curso possa atender aos objetivos das DCNs vigentes, buscando promover maior multidisciplinaridade e transdisciplinaridade em sua prática pedagógica, com maior ênfase no desenvolvimento de competências dos graduandos.

Higher education privatization in Nursing in Brazil: profile, challenges and trends.

Objective:this study aims to analyze and characterize the movement of expansion of Nursing undergraduate courses in Brazil since the 1990s. The characteristics of this expansion are discussed, as well as the socio-political setting where such movement occurred, and the quality of education available based on the data collected.Method:this is a descriptive and cross-sectional study with a quali-quantitative approach, with the use of secondary databases.Results:an accelerated and disordered growth of Nursing undergraduate courses was identified, as well as the number of vacancies, especially due to the participation of the private sector, especially since the year 2000. Geographical inequalities in the distribution of these courses and vacancies were also identified.Conclusion:the strong expansion of higher education in Nursing, along with other health professions, resulted in the strengthening of private higher education institutions associated with economic groups, regional concentration, as well as the excessive offer of distance learning without adequate evaluation of its quality or repercussions.

Blended Learning Strategies for Japanese Literature Classes in the University

In Brazil, the country with the largest population of Japanese descent outside Japan, there are currently one private and eight public universities offering undergraduate studies in Japanese Language and Literature. Even though there is a considerable amount of research about blended learning strategies concerning the study of foreign languages, it does not happen the same way when it comes to foreign literature. Besides, learning literature demands more than knowing the language in which it is written. This work presents some reflections on blended learning strategies with the aim of contributing to Japanese literature classes in the context of Brazilian undergraduate courses.

Contributions of ENADE to the Assessment of Control and Automation Engineering in Brazil

ENADE that stands, in Portuguese, for “National Exam of Student Performance” is an exam for all senior students about to graduate; it is one of the official tools for measuring the state of undergraduate courses in Brazil. Contribution: This article presents an integrative synthesis of the 2014 edition of ENADE examination of control and automation engineering (CAE) courses in Brazil. Background: ENADE is a national exam triennially administered for the senior undergraduate students in each area, as part of the federal government policies for performance assessment of higher education in Brazil. The results of ENADE are the basis of quality indexes used for program accreditation and funds distribution. Research Questions: What are the main assessments that the ENADE 2014 can provide about the CAE courses in Brazil? How can the results of such a nationwide evaluation be exploited by specific programs to improve their academic performance? Methodology: Starting from a historical perspective of CAE in Brazil, the authors present their experience with the methods and tools for the preparation of the CAE exam and synthesize the most relevant results of ENADE 2014. Finally, a case study is used to illustrate how could a teaching institution exploit the ENADE report to assess its courses performance. Findings: The exams of 3.579 senior students from 118 CAE courses show significant differences in the academic performance of CAE courses in Brazil according to the geographical region, funding type, and academic organization. The objective and discursive questions had very good discrimination covering the main profiles, resources, and objects of knowledge in the CAE curriculum. The analysis of students’ performance can support educators’ local decisions to improve the quality of CAE courses.

Literatura brasileira e dramaturgia nacional: fronteiras e passagens

RESUMO O presente artigo discute a situação das fronteiras e passagens da literatura brasileira e da dramaturgia nacional. A ênfase do estudo recai sobre a necessidade promover uma aproximação entre o universo do teatro nacional e da literatura brasileira nas licenciaturas de Letras do país. Como amostra da profícua aproximação, ao longo do trabalho foram empreendidas análises das peças: O noviço, de Martins Pena, Auto da compadecida, de Ariano Suassuna e Eles não usam black-tie, de Gianfrancesco Guarnieri.

An investigation of research gaps in reported skills required for Industry 4.0 readiness of Brazilian undergraduate students

PurposeThe objective of this study is to identify research gaps related to skills required for Industry 4.0, considering research in the context of Brazilian undergraduate courses. In this sense, the question of this study was established: What are the educational gaps related to skills required in Industry 4.0 context, considering considering research in the previously mentioned?Design/methodology/approachTo answer this question, the ten top work-related skills required for professionals in Industry 4.0 published by the World Economic Forum were used to perform a systematic literature review. From this review, 100 articles were found in the searched databases. From them, 18 were within the research scope.FindingsThrough an analysis of their content, it was possible to verify that, from the 10 skills analyzed, only six were identified in the articles. That is, no research was found for: people management, service orientation, negotiation, and cognitive flexibility. Additionally, there are undergraduate courses that are not considered in current researches and should be analyzed.Originality/valueThe gaps pointed out in this study are relevant to guide future analyzes of the Brazilian educational model and may provide insights for research in other countries.

Formação de professores de Biologia e a leitura semiológica de cartuns da Revista Ciência Hoje das Crianças

A formação de professores no Brasil vem passando por contínuas e complexas transformações e têm, cada vez mais, exigido posturas atreladas ao nosso tempo. Formar jovens professores para que compreendam mensagens – de quaisquer naturezas – de forma crítica está previsto, enquanto competência profissional, em documento internacional da UNESCO, contudo, o desenvolvimento desta, remete a uma reestruturação curricular nos cursos de licenciatura em todo o país. Os cursos de licenciatura tem repertório docente para a compreensão de competências voltadas à Alfabetização Midiática e Informacional (AMI), como proposto pela UNESCO? Nossos objetivos neste trabalho de pesquisa foram: (a) investigar e apresentar concepções de professores em formação acerca de um cartum publicado em suplemento da Revista Ciência Hoje das Crianças voltado ao público infanto-juvenil e (b) apresentar uma análise semiológica estrutural de elementos imagéticos constante do mesmo cartum a partir do referencial teórico barthesiano. Os resultados sugerem que: (a) licenciados e licenciandos realizaram, em sua maioria, uma leitura sem profundidade do cartum apresentado; (b) o cartum, de modo geral, realiza por si mesmo uma “leitura de sociedade” tal qual a visão do autor que o produziu.

Implementation of extension in the technology and production area within professional discipline of engineering in the form of workshop

The implementation of the extension in the engineering course complies with the Brazilian government's directive for the implementation of extension in the Brazilian undergraduate courses. The objective of this article is to describe the implementation of extension activities in the area of technology and production in a module of professional discipline of an engineering course in a Brazilian federal university in the form of workshops in the field of technology and production. We did a participatory action research in which it was tried to meet the new requirements of Higher Education legislation in relation to the 10% extension that should be included in the higher courses. We did this research on a degree in engineering course. The results were auspicious, enabling compliance with the legal requirements and the satisfaction of the local academic community.

A temática ambiental no cotidiano dos cursos de licenciatura: uma análise bibliográfica dos trabalhos publicados no ENALIC (2010 a 2018)

Esta pesquisa apresenta-se como um estudo do tipo exploratório, utilizando como técnica de seleção o levantamento bibliográfico dentre os trabalhos publicados nos anais do Encontro Nacional das Licenciaturas (ENALIC), no período de 2010 a 2018, assumindo o paradigma qualitativo para a análise dos dados coletados. O objetivo de pesquisa assumido pelos pesquisadores foi o desafio de elencar, dentre o total destes trabalhos, aqueles que discutiam a temática ambiental nos cursos de licenciatura brasileiros. O evento da pesquisa tem se mostrado potente como ambiente de pesquisa, pois reúne pesquisas desenvolvidas nos cursos de licenciatura e, portanto, pela análise dos trabalhos publicados, permite-nos mapear o cenário brasileiro da inserção da temática ambiental nos cursos de licenciatura. Entendendo que possíveis fragilidades no estudo desta temática à época da formação inicial pudessem ser trabalhadas na formação continuada, um segundo crivo foi adotado pelos pesquisadores ao selecionar os trabalhos que tratavam da temática ambiental do egresso da licenciatura, já no ambiente escolar. Como resultado, observou-se que a temática ambiental não era destaque no ENALIC. Adicionalmente, foi possível concluir que o número de pesquisas que vinculam a temática ambiental a ações de formação continuada de professores é ainda menor, fato que acende o alerta às autoridades municipais, estaduais e federais para a necessidade de se investir em políticas públicas que consigam tornar reais as práticas pedagógicas pretendidas nas legislações ambientais e educacionais, sejam por meio da discussão do currículo das licenciaturas ou pelo investimento em cursos de formação continuada de professores.

The conception and development of textbooks for distance learning courses: a case study of a teacher education course

The aim is to contribute to the research on the conception and development of mathematics textbooks for undergraduate distance education courses (EAD). In particular, we acknowledge the EAD undergraduate courses in Brazil as an important governmental initiative for teacher education. Amongst other specificities of the Brazilian model of distance education, one aspect consists of writing proper material and textbooks, raising a need to investigate the results of their conception and development. We report on a case study in which a chapter in a written textbook developed by a group of professors is analysed according to hermeneutics, describing the tessiture of the text and context of the implemented task. Aware that the task demanded processes different from those used when writing textbooks for face-to-face lecture courses, though at the same time not coinciding with the wordings of the interactions of a classroom lecture, the group of authors agreed on a notion of lessons on paper. Our analysis faces the challenge of problematising qualitative differences regarding the semiotic means of the mathematics embedded in face-to-face versus distance learning activities, raising questions on the nature of their results and the development of induced thinking in both contexts. Investigating the kind of mathematical knowledge produced for the lessons on paper texts, we drew on whether the written lesson for distance education is closer to the pedagogical-content knowledge than to the classical academic knowledge.

Perception of professors who teach statistics in higher education in Brazil towards statistical teaching

This study aims to identify the perception of three hundred and thirty-four teachers who teach statistical content in undergraduate courses in Brazil according to their area of action, considering the following aspects: how statistical knowledge is acquired; how the statistical content is worked in the classroom; and as techniques of memorization are linked to the process of teaching Statistics. Depending on the field of study they teach (Humanities, Exact and Natural Sciences, and Health Sciences) or the type of institution for which they work (Public or Private), they define statistics as a research tool for organizing and analyzing data for decision making and using real problems. They still argue that statistical knowledge is acquired by associating theory with practice with the support of technological tools.

CIRCUNSTÂNCIAS DA CRIAÇÃO DO PRIMEIRO CURSO DE GRADUAÇÃO EM ENFERMAGEM DO ESPÍRITO SANTO

RESUMO Objetivo: analisar as circunstâncias da criação do primeiro curso de graduação em enfermagem do Espírito Santo a partir da expansão dos cursos de graduação em enfermagem no Brasil na década de 1970. Método: estudo sócio-histórico documental, com abordagem qualitativa. O recorte temporal compreende o período de 1972 a 1976, sendo o marco inicial demarcado pela III Reunião de Ministros da Saúde das Américas, ocorrida no Chile. Foram utilizadas como fontes primárias centrais dois documentos escritos: o relatório do trabalho intitulado “Dados sobre a formação do pessoal de enfermagem do Brasil”, produzido pela Comissão de Documentação e Estudos da Associação Brasileira de Enfermagem, publicado em 1969, e o relatório “Desenvolvimento do Ensino Superior de Enfermagem no Brasil”, publicado pelo Departamento de Assuntos Universitários do Ministério da Educação e da Cultura, em 1979. Resultados: a expansão do número de cursos de graduação em enfermagem no Brasil na década de 1970, a partir do Plano Decenal de Saúde Para as Américas, propiciou condições favoráveis para criação do primeiro curso de graduação em enfermagem do Espírito Santo. Conclusão: o Brasil, por meio do Departamento de Assuntos Universitários do Ministério da Educação e da Cultura e com o apoio da Associação Brasileira de Enfermagem, iniciou uma política de desenvolvimento da enfermagem, onde foram criados, na década de 1970, um expressivo número de cursos de graduação em enfermagem, possibilitando além do aumento do quantitativo de enfermeiros uma melhor distribuição geográfica desses profissionais.

Um estudo acerca dos contextos emergentes nos cursos de licenciatura no Brasil: em destaque a internacionalização

Este estudo delineia e analisa os principais elementos que configuram contextos emergentes na Educação Superior e, em especial, nos cursos de licenciatura no Brasil. Trata-se de uma pesquisa do estado do conhecimento, realizada na Biblioteca Digital do Instituto Brasileiro de Informação em Ciência e Tecnologia (IBICT), no período de 2012 a 2016. Os trabalhos analisados apresentam elementos que caracterizam o que tem se configurado emergente na perspectiva da expansão e diversificação, da interlocução educação básica e superior, da diversidade e, em especial, da internacionalização entendida como desafio aos cursos de licenciatura. Nas produções científicas a terminologia “contextos emergentes” ainda é pouco discutida, entretanto estão relacionados a elementos que interferem ou decorrem da [re]formulação de políticas educacionais; se descortinam em estratégias e ações de governo e/ou institucionais e estão imbricados ao cenário da formação de professores.

Overview of physical therapy graduation courses in Brazil: current scenario

Abstract Introduction: After the regulation of Physical Therapy (PT) in 1969, there were only six undergraduate courses in Brazil. In the 90s, higher education underwent major expansion in all professions and the same occurred to PT, with consequent increase in the number of professionals in the labor market and privatization of education. Objective: To describe the current situation of PT courses in Brazil offered by Higher Education Institutions (IES). Methods: The data for the region, academic organization, situation, period, school system, administrative category, vacancies, course hours and duration were obtained from the website of the Ministry of Education (MEC) and refer to the year of 2013. The descriptive analyzes of central tendency, dispersion and percentage were performed in Stata 9®. Results: From the total of 550 IES registered in the MEC, 281 (51%) were in the Southeast. Regarding the academic organization, 341 (62%) corresponded to universities and 483 (87.9%) of the IES were private. Of the courses, 521 (94.7%) are active, the predominant school system was the semiannual (91.5%) and 438 were part-time. The average vacancies authorized by the IES were 129 ± 102, with at least 44,900 vacancies available in the country. Of the courses, 75% had 4,000 hours of duration with the minimum of seven semesters and a maximum of fourteen. Conclusion: The data show a higher offer of PT courses in the private sector compared to the public. There was a progressive concentration of courses and vacancies in the Southeast, especially in São Paulo.

Knowledge production, learning, and (meta)cognition in international relations theory: a case study in Brazil

Este artigo investiga a aprendizagem e a produção de conhecimento teórico na graduação em Relações Internacionais (RI) no Brasil. Consideramos que as dificuldades do estudante para ler/escrever textos acadêmicos se relacionam a questões metacognitivas e escolhas teóricas no âmbito acadêmico. Essa hipótese fundamenta-se tanto no contexto educacional brasileiro, que prioriza conceituações, no lugar do raciocínio analítico, quanto na predominância de abordagens positivistas tradicionais, desconectadas da situação de países em desenvolvimento como o Brasil. A fundamentação teórica compreende princípios da pedagogia crítica e das ciências cognitivas, com foco em quatro ações metatextuais com a escrita: reportar, sumarizar, analisar e teorizar (NEVES, 2015). Para descrever a produção dos estudantes, propôs-se a 35 alunos da disciplina “Teoria das RI I” um roteiro de leitura diagnóstico sobre um capítulo de livro teórico. As respostas para quatro das questões mostram que a falta de pensamento autônomo na disciplina se reflete na compreensão dos alunos, expressa por meio da escrita perfunctória. Consequentemente, nega-se a possibilidade de se tornarem sujeitos ativos na compreensão e transformação da política internacional. Quanto à leitura/escrita, reflexões sobre os aspectos metacognitivos do aprendizado precisam ser incluídas não apenas no ensino da linguagem, mas também nas disciplinas teóricas, especialmente no trato com textos acadêmicos.